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80. Impossible Burden
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ENTRAPPED BY THE DEVIL 81. Always First
[LAURA]I felt like I was living the biggest and most significant night of my life.The night that everyone dreams of at least once in their life.A magical night of love and laughter and romance.When we were teenagers, my sister Annie couldn’t stop talking about it. She was different from me even back then. Her priorities had always been to find a good man and live a happy life; she simply wanted to be happy.“I don’t have big dreams, Erica,” she used to say to me when we were alone at night, after mom and dad had gone to sleep. “I feel like having big dreams and bigger goals diverts you from what truly matters in life. Everyone in the world only wants two things: a stomach full of food, and of course, love. That’s the only thing that truly matters. The rest is a distraction.”I always made fun of her point of view on life, not only because it was far from my perspective on the world, but also because that felt like my duty as a sister—to tease her and make her roll her eyes at me.
ENTRAPPED BY THE DEVIL 82. Devil Of Venice
[LAURA]Erica.How did he…? The question dies in my mouth, much like my faith in his goodness. The gun he’s pointing at my face is clear evidence that he isn’t the good man I thought he was.How did I read him wrong? What did I miss?“It’s not your fault,” he says, his face sombre, with no emotions passing across his forever-handsome features. I can tell just by the way he’s holding the gun that this isn’t his first time. “And neither you are the first person to underestimate me.”Of course, that’s true.What was I thinking? That just because his family kept him away from their dangerous business, he wouldn’t be any less dangerous? That just because he lived a simpler and lonelier life, he wouldn’t have a single bad bone in his body?I should have known he was capable of just as much damage as his brother, that he was just as menacing. They were siblings. It was impossible for them not to rub off on each other.But nothing compares to this feeling churning in the pit of my stomach, th
ENTRAPPED BY THE DEVIL 83. The Real Deal
[LIZZY]It’s strange how life has a way of taking you by surprise, even though your whole life has been nothing but a buffet of hundreds of them—thousands, even.In less than twenty-four hours, my first surprise was receiving a call from Vladimir Perazzo and his order to take the chopper he was sending and come straight to him. Vector was against it—against letting me leave alone, but after a long and heated conversation with the boss after he locked me out of his bedroom, he reluctantly agreed to let me go. I don’t know what Vladimir said to him, but it had to be a solid assurance of my safety, because nothing else could have worked on my wounded warrior.My second surprise was seeing that the man who came to fetch me was my long-lost brother, Tony. I had so many questions when I saw him, starting with what the hell he was doing there and when, but the entire ride to god knows where was spent in painful silence. None of us said anything; we just exchanged sad and anxious glances.And
ENTRAPPED BY THE DEVIL 84. Fell For A Lie
[LAURA]I watch Lizzy storming out of the cabin, the doors flapping behind her.It’s a damn miracle that only after she leaves me alone, a lone tear flees my eye and slowly makes its way down my cheek. My chin trembles, and a strangled sob slips from my throat, despite my efforts to suppress it with every fiber of my being.I hate myself so much right now.Lizzy did nothing to deserve what I put her through, and neither did Joey.God knows I love that boy more than anything else in this whole damned world.For six years. Six long fucking years I cared for him like my own child.I was never mother material, not with revenge consuming my mind and a heart filled with more hatred than any other emotion. I simply wasn’t cut out for it.At first, we thought it was only Lizzy we needed to take care of. No big deal. I could play the role of a good wife and a friend, no problem. But then one morning, Lizzy woke up and couldn’t stop vomiting. She had a raging fever, her body burning up like wil
ENTRAPPED BY THE DEVIL 85. The Truth
[LIZZY]The flight back to Black Rose Island is long and brutal. I’m beyond exhausted, and I can barely keep my eyes open. However, that doesn’t mean I’m sleepy; not at all. I don’t think I can sleep after what happened today, after hearing what she said and how cruelly she tore me down.Her harsh voice and heartless words keep echoing in my head, like a hammer relentlessly driving a nail into the wall, ensuring it stays firmly in place.To be honest, I’m not upset that she used me and Joey to get her hands on Perazzos or the people responsible for her father’s death. What upsets me is that after spending six years with me, she didn’t trust me one bit. Not then, and certainly not now. I’m angry because she still has the audacity to lie to my face, to choose to act instead of showing her true self.I wish she could have placed a bit more trust in me, just as I had wholeheartedly trusted her with mine and Joey’s lives.But well, but nothing can be done now, can we?I sit in the cushy le
ENTRAPPED BY THE DEVIL 86. No Matter What
[LIZZY]“You’re leaving?” I blurt out, eyes wide as saucers, my heart sinking deep into my stomach.The dark night stretches overhead, filled with scattered stars that twinkle like precious diamonds. The wind blows stronger, making my hair flutter all over my face.Zarina walks toward me, gracefully brushing the dark brown strands out of her face, her peaceful eyes briefly trailing over a sleeping Joey, who’s still tightly clutched to my chest.I had just walked out of the plane, only to find Zarina stepping out of the car. Theo, one of the caretakers of the Island, carries her bags, and Chiara is holding the baby, flashing me a cheerful smile as they pass one by one, heading up the airstairs.My heart sinks even more with her confirmation. “Why?” I ask, my eyes starting to well up.“Because it’s time,” she says and gently runs her long fingers over Joey’s back. “Mir is taking over the business, and although he told me to stay here as long as I want, I know he hates being away from hi
ENTRAPPED BY THE DEVIL 87. Ridiculously Crazy
[LIZZY]When I wake up next time, my body aches like hell. It’s as if a terrible weight has been thrown over me, pinning me down, and I can’t summon the strength to get up.I snap my eyes open and practically groan when sunlight cuts through my eyelids like a laser, and irritates me and my skin like hell.Damn Vector. All this time, he has been cocooned in dark with doors fucking shut and curtains tightly drawn, and now that I’m the one who desperately needs darkness and a lot more sleep, he has flung the windows wide open. Ugh. I’m going to kill him, I swear.A voice in my head warns me against going back to sleep, but my body seems to have different plans entirely. In seconds, I grab the duvet and pull them back up over my head, rolling on the bed like a cinnamon roll to escape the heated rays. However, I barely settle into a comfortable spot when something suddenly clicks.My eyes snap back open.Joey.“Shit shit shit!” The happenings of the previous night smack me in the face and
ENTRAPPED BY THE DEVIL 88. Only Mine
[VECTOR]I was ten when my sister Emma was born. She was this small, delicate thing that I was too scared to even touch. Her big doe eyes were like pools of laughter and innocence that spilled from her mouth every time she giggled and thrashed her little arms around, wanting attention, wanting someone to hold her, carry her around, keep her squeezed against their touch.She used to love it when our mother used to talk to her, holding a long and silly conversation while little Emma babbled away, God knows what. But that hardly mattered when I was too busy wiping sweat off my palms, wondering if I would finally get to hold her.Mom wanted me to not shy away, always telling me that I was supposed to protect her. Dad, however, seemed a little unsure. He sincerely believed that I needed to grow up a little more if I wanted that kind of responsibility. And I always believed he was right. That I needed to grow not only physically but mentally. That I needed to make myself capable, just like
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